The story behind
the swoosh is much bigger than that of just Nike and its corporate policy of
treating it’s workers as slaves: it’s a story that speaks to the working
conditions of many of the products that you and I use every day, from iPhones
to Droids, from large screen TV’s to these new tablet computers Steve Jobs
keeps whining about. 

What is the
morally correct thing to do when we learn the truth about the working
conditions for the people who make all this stuff we carry and use?  I can’t answer that for you, that’s something
you have to figure out for yourself.

I’m not here to
talk philosophy with you; remember: I am just a doofus.  But I think that the very least any of us can
do is to LEARN about what’s going on in places like Indonesia: just so we can
answer the question, as athletes, regarding this aspect of the running shoes
you and I wear every day.

Think about it:
right now you and I select our shoes based on fit, style, functionality,
weight, price and reputation….what if we were to add to that list of aspects
the adherence to social justice of the manufactures?  If, as runners, we focused on just one
company: Nike, the leader in sportswear and running paraphernalia, and just
learn more about how our shoes are made: that we might consider the treatment
of workers in our formula for what we should be purchasing?

No one is asking
you to ban Nike products, this isn’t about you and I: this is all about
learning…and I urge you to consider going to Teamsweat.org just as soon as you
get back from your run today, and click on the upcoming events link: please,
I’m asking this as a friend, and see when Jim Keady is going to be in your area
next; in fact: I’ll go further: if you attend a College or University, why not
contact Educating for Justice at http://educatingforjustice.org and see about
getting someone from that organization to come to your school to talk about
these issues.

This is important
stuff, and I’m not telling you this to make myself feel better about myself as
a runner: I’m telling you this because I think it will make us better athletes,
plain and simple.

This is not about
me, and it’s not about you: it’s about the good people in countries like Indonesia
who just want a little of the life that you and I enjoy.  I’ll spare you the angry rant about Nike or
my firm belief that they are most certainly evil: but I hope you’ll listen to
what Jim Keady is saying here, and I very much hope you’ll make an effort to go
see him; I’m going to list some of the places where he’ll be speaking in the
near future; he’s getting ready to head back over to Indonesia, so it’s
important that we learn from what he finds there, and that we think for
ourselves, using the information we can learn from his findings and those
findings of other independent activists.

More than
anything, I hope that in listening to this small portion of Jim’s lecture:
behind the swoosh, you will get at least a little: angry.

Show Links:

http://www.teamsweat.org

http://www.educatingforjustice.org


http://www.educatingforjustice.org/store_main.htm

http://www.nikebiz.com/responsibility/workers_and_factories.html

http://www.brophyprep.org/summit/globalization/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Behind_the_Swoosh.swf

http://twitter.com/teamsweat

http://www.facebook.com/TeamSweat

http://worldwidefestivalofraces.com

Free Audible Book download: www.audiblepodcast.com/phedi

“Justice Will Roll Down” was by Sandra McCracken; http://www.sandramccracken.com